Heart's Desire
by Miss Elisha
Summary: Ron's landed himself in Auror training, and one day finds himself snooping about the Department of Mysteries. After he finds the Mirror of Erised, he knows what he wants. Now he's just got to figure out how to get it. Written preDH and now AU.
1. Chapter 1

"Weasley!"

Ron looked up from his desk—which, incidentally, he could not see anyway, due to the mess of papers covering its surface—to see Kingsley Shacklebolt towering over him, looking aggravated. "Yes, sir?"

"How many times do I have to tell you, Weasley? It's Kingsley. Mr. Shacklebolt if you're dead set on being proper, but I'd rather you weren't. I've had enough propriety to last me a while."

"Kingsley, then. You need something?"

When Ron had entered Auror training, he'd expected to be practicing spells and countercurses all day, not sitting in an office shuffling papers. He'd also expected to skip right over this "apprentice" part and go straight to the good stuff based on past experience, but his mum and Hermione had insisted that he not do just that, and when those two joined forces, well, the only thing there was to do was go along. Harry had apparently gotten to skip the paperwork part of Auror training; his apprenticeship had him out rounding up the last of the Death Eaters with Moody, Tonks, and Lupin. Then again, with Ginny still in her last year at Hogwarts, Harry didn't have women around to bully him into "safer," "more respectable" assignments.

But as far as apprenticeships went, this one wasn't so bad, and Shacklebolt had proven to be not only an intelligent and capable Auror, but also very personable and patient, and Ron really was learning a lot from him. Even though he hadn't completed the necessary NEWTs, no one would be able to accuse him of not earning his position as an Auror after going through the extent of training Shacklebolt insisted on. Most of the time he was actually glad they had forced him into this position just because of that, even if it did mean he had to run Shacklebolt's errands and do his paperwork. But of course, he'd never let his mother and Hermione know that.

"I need you to go down to the Department of Mysteries for me. Croaker's got something for me that he says needs to be hand-delivered, but he's too busy to come up and I've got a meeting with the Minister. The wanker won't even tell me what it is!"

"No problem, sir. I'll get it for you." Ron pushed his chair back and stood, eager to be away from his desk for even a few minutes.

"Great! I should be back in about an hour. Have whatever it is up here for me by then, ok?"

"Sure."

"Thanks, Weasley. And it's Kingsley!" he added over his shoulder as he walked out the door.

As soon as Shacklebolt had gone, Ron sighed and slouched his shoulders. As eager as he was to get out of his office, he hated going to the Department of Mysteries, and he hated trying to find Croaker. The Unspeakable never told anyone where he could be found, so Ron always ended up opening door after door looking for him. He did his best not to enter any of the rooms there if he could help it—his experience during his fifth year at Hogwarts had taught him that the Department of Mysteries wasn't an entirely safe place to go poking around—but no matter what he tried, finding Croaker always took longer than he wanted it to.

Ron sighed again. _If I've only got an hour, I'd best get started_, he thought, and headed out the door.

A few minutes later Ron opened the door to the now-familiar circular room lined with black doors and eerie blue lights. He shut the door behind him and closed his eyes, waiting for the spinning to start. "Where's Croaker hiding today?" he asked, and the room stopped spinning. When he opened his eyes, the door in front of him was standing open.

Unfortunately, it was never that easy. The spinning room would show him which door Croaker had gone through, but that didn't guarantee Croaker was still there. He had a habit of going through multiple rooms to get to wherever he was going. Ron supposed Croaker thought he was being mysterious or something, but Ron just found it annoying.

But there was no other way about it, so Ron trudged through the open door. The only light in the room was the faint blue gleam coming from the room now behind him, and as the door swung shut, Ron muttered the spell to light the tip of his wand. A small beam of light shone directly ahead of him, and he made out a door on the other side of the room.

Keeping the light on the door, he actually made it a few steps before bumping into something. His toes collided forcefully mid-stride with the corner of something hard and heavy. "Ow!" He held his foot up and began to hop around, but as soon as he did he ran into something behind him, knocking it over and causing a loud, metallic _clang_. "Bloody hell!"

The door he was headed towards suddenly opened, spilling light into the room, and Ron could see Croaker's outline. "What's going on in here?!" he shouted, holding his wand out in front of him. "Who's there?"

_Oh, that was way too easy_, Ron thought. "Croaker, it's me, Ron Weasley. Kingsley Shacklebolt sent me down to get a package from you."

"Well there's no need to make such a racket!"

"It's bloody dark in here, I can't see!" Ron retorted.

Croaker flicked his wand and suddenly the whole room was illuminated. "Better?" Looking around, Ron thought himself lucky not to have run into something sooner. A quick glance showed him that the room was packed full of random odds and ends, everything from large chests of drawers (like the one he had just kicked) to small crystal figurines to stacks and stacks of books.

"There are things in here more valuable than your toes, Weasley, so watch where you're going!" And with that, Croaker turned and walked away from the door.

Not wanting to lose track of the man again, Ron picked his way through the clutter and into the next room, which looked just as full and untidy. Croaker was already half way across the room, sitting himself down in a cushy-looking blue chair and rifling around on a large desk that looked even messier than Ron's. Ron crossed the room and stood a few feet behind the chair, waiting for some further direction. A few moments passed with no response from Croaker. Ron spoke up cautiously, "Sir?"

Croaker flinched a bit, seeming to have forgotten Ron was even there. "What do you want?"

"The package for Mr. Shacklebolt, sir."

"Ah, yes." Croaker nodded his head toward a small brown package sitting on the corner of his desk. "That one. Careful with it, and don't open it. Bloody thing's been tampered with. No telling what might happen."

Ron stepped over a small pile of books and gingerly picked up the package. "I'll be careful, sir." But he doubted Croaker even heard him, as the man had already turned his attention back to his scattered papers.

Ron turned and waded back the way he had come, hoping Croaker had forgotten to put out the light in the other cluttered room.

He had. Ron closed the door to Croaker's office behind him and took another look around. Seeing only the two doors in this room, he breathed a sigh of relief. _That wasn't too bad at all_, he thought, a grin rising on his face. _I'll actually have a minute to relax before Shacklebolt gets back_.

The grin slipped off his face as another thought occurred to him: _What if he comes back early? He'll probably just find more work for me to do. _Glancing behind him first to make sure Croaker's door was still shut, Ron looked around the room again. _There's got to be something in here to distract me. Just for a few minutes, then I'll get back._

And indeed there was. He saw the crystal figurines he had spotted earlier and bent to take a closer look. They turned out to be pieces of a very ornate wizard chess set. As he pressed his face closer to them, he heard a miniature voice shout at him, "What do you think you're doing, big nose?"

"My nose isn't big!" Ron argued. "And I was just looking!"

"Not big, ha! Your nose is bigger than my entire body, so watch where you're shoving it, would you?"

Ron snorted at the chess pieces and straightened himself up to look around again.

And then he saw it, leaning against the wall in the far corner: the Mirror of Erised.

He'd seen it once before, on Christmas night back in his first year. He had looked into it then and had seen himself as Head Boy and Quidditch Captain. For a moment he had thought the mirror showed the future, but Harry proved that theory wrong by revealing his own vision of his family. But Ron's vision had proven to be a glimpse of the future anyway: he hadn't been Captain, but he had played a major part in winning the Quidditch Cup in his fifth year; and the Head Boy badge had arrived for him in the mail, even if he never actually got to wear it at Hogwarts.

Harry had told him sometime later that Dumbledore explained the Mirror as showing the deepest and most desperate desires of our hearts. First year all he had ever wanted was to stand out, to be special in some way. Ron supposed he'd already accomplished that, and more so than he'd originally wanted. So the question was, what did his heart desire now?

Ron debated with himself for a minute. _Shacklebolt will be back soon (you've got plenty of time), I really do need to get to my desk (the work will be there when you get there). I don't need to know (but aren't you curious?). Really._ But inner debate or no, his feet carried him ever closer to the Mirror, and before he knew what he was doing he found himself standing square in front of it. One more step and he could see exactly what his heart desired. All he had to do was take one more little step.

Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Ron took another step forward. He opened his eyes and stared into the mirror. After a moment, his jaw dropped open. After another moment, he snapped it shut. Yet another, and he gulped.

The next moment he was leaving the Department of Mysteries, running back to his own office.


	2. Chapter 2

_That can't be right. (You know it's right.) It can't be. (It is.) That would never happen. (But you want it to.) No, I don't. (Yes, you do.) Get a hold of yourself! _Ron forced himself to slow to a walk, trying to act perfectly normal despite what he had just seen in the Mirror.

He slammed the door to his office and immediately started pacing, not noticing the small package he still clutched in his hand or the other person in the room.

"You okay, Weasley?"

Ron jumped and spun around to see Shacklebolt sitting behind his own very large, very neat desk, the quill in his hand frozen over a short pile of papers. "You look a little unnerved. Croaker give you a hard time again?"

"No, it's not that. I'm fine," Ron huffed.

Shacklebolt put his quill down and laced his fingers in front of him, leaning forward onto his elbows. "Weasley, I'm an Auror. You know very well that we're trained to catch people lying to us. And you, Mr. Weasley, are lying. And not very well, either. I thought I'd trained you better than that."

Sighing, Ron forced his body to relax a bit. "It's nothing. Really. I just… learned something about myself, that's all." Glancing down at his desk, he added, "I hadn't really expected to learn much of anything today."

Shacklebolt laughed aloud before donning a very serious expression. "You learn something every day, Weasley, that's what makes this job fun. But you must really be flustered—you haven't called me 'sir' once since you came in here!" Ron flushed pink, and Kingsley laughed again. "What do you say we learn what old Croaker sent me today?"

"What?" When Ron gave him a confused look, Shacklebolt pointed to the little brown package Ron was still holding. The pink spread all the way to his ears this time. "Oh, right. Sorry."

Ron stepped over to the tidy desk and laid the package on top of the pile of papers. "Croaker said it's been tampered with, told me not to open it."

"Did he tell you what it is?"

Ron shook his head. "He just said to be careful."

"Well then, you might want to take a step back."

Ron did take a step back, but then leaned so far forward to watch that the step back made no difference at all.

Shacklebolt scooted his chair back from his desk a little before picking up his wand. He tapped it lightly and the package began to unwrap itself. As the paper fell away, Ron could see a ring of gold with a small hourglass set in the middle.

"Uh-oh." Shacklebolt pushed himself back from his desk a bit more.

"Uh-oh what?" Ron looked from Shacklebolt to the object on his desk and back again. "What is it?"

"It's a Time Turner. And time is not a good thing to have tampered with."

"A Time Turner?" Recognition flashed across Ron's face, but his look of confusion came back just as quickly. "But wait, Dumbledore said they were all destroyed in the fight with the Death Eaters?"

"We thought they were. Someone must've had this one at the time, or figured out how to make a new one."

"But why? I mean, if it had been loaned out to someone, wouldn't they have that on record somewhere? And why would someone be making more of these things if no one even knows they were all broken?" Ron was genuinely concerned.

Shacklebolt looked up at him and flashed him a big toothy grin. "You're starting to think like an Auror, Weasley! Hermione must be starting to rub off on you at last!"

Ron flushed straight to the ears this time, and cleared his throat and changed the subject as quickly as he could. "Croaker said it had been tampered with. Do you suppose that's what he means?"

Kingsley shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine as to what Croaker ever means. But I'm sure that's why he sent it up here to us first. He'll deal with the unknown, but only if he knows how it's dangerous. Doesn't like surprises, that one, particularly nasty surprises."

"So that's where we come in. We do the dangerous part, and he just plays around with things after we make sure they won't kill him," Ron said sarcastically.

"Pretty much. See, you're learning all sorts of things today."

Ron grimaced. "Fabulous. If I keep learning at this rate, my head's going to explode before dinner."

Shacklebolt laughed and waved his wand over the Time Turner once again, which neatly re-wrapped itself. "What do you say we go figure this one out in the Blasting Room, eh?"

The Blasting Room was how they referred to the room they were given for practicing their defensive spells, which was pretty much just an empty room with thick walls, no windows, and nothing to break. Ron's face lit up at the suggestion, and he knew he was in for a fun afternoon.

When Ron returned home to number twelve Grimmauld Place that evening, he found Harry sitting in the kitchen writing a letter.

"Hey Harry," Ron greeted his friend as he entered the room. "I'm bloody exhausted!" he announced as he plopped down across from Harry and grabbed the bottle of Butterbeer sitting on the table.

"You can have one of your own, you know," Harry said as he sealed up his letter and tied it to Hedwig's leg.

"I know, but this one's right here." Ron took a drink of the golden liquid before leaning back in his chair and kicking his feet up onto the corner of the table. Harry handed Hedwig a small treat before she headed out through the window. "Shacklebolt and I got a stray Time Turner today, had to do all kinds of tests to make sure it wasn't wonky. This job really takes it out of a bloke, yeah?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Harry answered off-handedly, still staring at the table where Hedwig had been moments before.

"We were in the Blasting Room all afternoon working and the bloody thing turned out to be a fake!" Ron shook his head and reached over to steal a roll from Harry's plate.

Harry jumped up, walked across the kitchen, and started preparing another plate of food.

Ron slapped his feet back on the floor and sat up straight. "Harry, it was just a roll. Here, you can have it back!" He held the roll out in front of him, offering it to Harry, who simply shook his head and continued piling food onto the plate. Ron settled back into his seat, bit off a large mouthful of roll, and kept right on talking. "But honestly, it wasn't even a real Time Turner! Someone had just transfigured an old pocket watch to look like one and put a bloody anti-reversal spell on it. Probably thought it would look impressive sitting in a case in his drawing room."

Harry finished loading the plate and handed it to Ron, turning back to the refrigerator for another bottle of Butterbeer while Ron began shoveling food into his mouth. Returning to the table, Harry sat down across from Ron again and promptly placed his elbows on the table, his chin on one hand and a wistful look on his face.

"Are you okay, Harry?" Ron asked around his mouthful of food. "You seem a bit… off today."

"Do you ever think about getting married, Ron?"

Ron got caught somewhere between choking on the food in his mouth and spitting it out "What?!"

"You know, married? Spending the rest of your life with someone. Waking up with them every morning and going to bed with them every night." Harry stared dreamily at the wall in front of him while Ron managed to swallow his food.

"No! Bloody hell, Harry! What makes you think there's someone I want to—"A suspicious glare suddenly came across Ron's face. "Wait, you didn't… that letter… you were writing to Ginny, weren't you? You better not have proposed to her in a bloody letter. That's no way to treat my sister!" Ron was out of his chair and bent half way over the table by the time he finished.

Harry snapped out of his trance when Ron stood up. "Relax, Ron, I didn't propose to her!"

Ron settled down a bit and sat back down in his chair. "OK, then. Glad that's settled."

"Not yet, anyway," Harry muttered, and Ron jumped up again. "And I wouldn't do it in a letter! She's too good for that. I was just thinking about it, that's all."

"Bloody right, she's too good for that!" Ron griped as he sat down again.

"I am going to marry her, though." Harry took a drink of his Butterbeer. Ron simply glared. "Next summer, I think."

"Well, you've got this all planned out, haven't you? Kidnapping my little sister…" Ron stabbed his fork into a bit of steak and kidney pie.

"I'm not kidnapping her, Ron, I'm marrying her, and she's welcome to come and go as she pleases. It's not like I could stop her anyway."

Ron pointed his fork, food still hanging from the prongs, in Harry's direction and waved it about. "Yeah, well, you'll have to get Mum and Dad's permission, you know. And Bill's, and Charlie's, and Fred and George's. And mine too!" Ron clearly didn't expect all of that to happen. To emphasize his point, he stuck the forkful of pie into his mouth upside down and pulled out a clean fork with a slight _pop!_

"Actually, Ron, the only permission I need is Ginny's."

"You don't honestly think we'd let you get away with that, do you?" Ron was flabbergasted.

"Look, Ron," Harry said seriously, looking down at his hands. "I love Ginny, you know that. Marrying her would be a dream come true for me."

Ron nodded and relaxed, slouching into his chair.

"And not just because of her, either. I mean, I love her, and that's enough to make me want to marry her. But I wouldn't be getting _just_ her. Would I?" Harry raised his head to look his best friend in the eye.

"I s'pose not. You're getting the whole bloody family, whether you like it or not!"

"So does that mean you approve?" Harry's face lit up with excitement.

"Well of course I approve! You're my best mate, Harry." Ron shrugged one shoulder and smiled awkwardly.

"Just think, Ron, I'll finally have everything I've ever wanted, and it's all thanks to you!" Harry quipped, picking up his Butterbeer and raising it in a mock toast.

"Oi, Harry, that reminds me!" Ron said brightly, sitting up straight once again. "You remember that mirror we saw back in first year, the one that showed us what we want?"

"Sure, the Mirror of Erised. How could I forget? That was the first time I saw my parents."

"Yeah, that one. I saw it today." Ron started eating again, scooping up another bit of pie.

"Oh yeah? Where'd they hide it this time?" Harry leaned back into his chair and took a drink of his Butterbeer. This felt more like normal conversation between the two of them.

"Department of Mysteries. That old geezer Croaker's got it hidden in some storage room. 'Bout broke my bloody toe trying to get through there, too."

Harry chuckled at that image. "So did you look?"

"Well, yeah, a little."

"See anything good?"

Ron blushed and bowed his head. Finally, he muttered, "I saw…" He gulped and raised his head to look at Harry and his eyes went wide. "Hermione."

"You saw Hermione?" Harry smirked a little at the implication.

"No. Harry. Hermione." Ron pointed over Harry's shoulder. Hermione was standing in the doorway. Harry turned around and winked at her.

"Did I miss something?"


	3. Chapter 3

"Hermione, that dress really does look lovely on you."

Hermione twirled on the small platform, letting the pale blue skirt flutter around her calves, just as Madam Malkin walked back into the room, already tsk-ing at her.

"Hold still, child, we're almost finished." Hermione stopped spinning around and giggled silently in Ginny's direction. Madam Malkin took the edge of Hermione's skirt in her hands and ran her wand along the edge, which neatly hemmed itself to the proper length.

"I love the way this dress flows. I can't wait to dance in it at your wedding!" Hermione giggled again, and a devious smile flashed onto Ginny's face. "What? You look like you've just been handed an invisible Dungbomb or something."

Ginny laughed and countered, "No, I've got something better." Hermione raised her eyebrows in question, but Ginny just shook her head and smiled.

Madam Malkin finished hemming Hermione's skirt and stood back up, smoothing her robes with her hands. "Now now, dear, you just change back out of that dress and I'll have it packed up for you in a jiff. Let me know when you're ready," she added as she turned and walked out of the room.

Hermione spun around one last time before stepping down off the platform, then sighed and walked back into the dressing room, drawing the curtain behind her. A moment later she resumed her uncharacteristically girly babble and her voice took on a slightly higher pitch than normal. "I'm so excited, Ginny! I've never been in a wedding before! And it's going to be so beautiful and absolutely perfect, I can see it all now!"

"Can you see yourself dancing with Ron?" Ginny threw the question out so smoothly it took a moment to register with Hermione.

"Of course I'll be danc—" Hermione stopped mid-word and threw back the dressing room curtain. She was now regularly clothed and had the blue dress hanging over her arm. "Ginny Weasley, are you still trying to get Ron and I together?" She put her free hand on her hip and gave Ginny a stern look. "I thought I told you to give that over ages ago. You really are incorrigible." Hermione shook her head at her friend before carrying the blue dress to the doorway, where she pulled back another curtain to reveal Madam Malkin. After handing over the dress, Hermione turned back to see Ginny smirking at her again.

"Really, Hermione, he won't have anyone to dance with, and you know how mopey he gets when he feels left out. Remember what he was like at the Yule Ball?" Ginny raised an eyebrow, and Hermione rolled her eyes. "He'll ruin the fun for everyone. You wouldn't want that on your conscience again, would you?"

"On _my_ conscience? _Again?_"

Ginny sighed dramatically and softened her expression. "Come on, Hermione, I just want everyone to have a nice time. Do it for me and Harry. Please?"

"For your information, Ginny, I will be dancing with my date," Hermione said matter-of-factly, raising her chin in the air.

Ginny's jaw dropped open, and Hermione turned on her heel and walked out of the room.

Harry snapped his jaw shut after a moment. "A date? You've got a date?"

"I don't know why you're so surprised, Harry. I'm a very handsome bloke, you know," Ron said as he straightened to his full height and tugged on imaginary lapels. "And it's not like I haven't dated before."

"I don't think snogging Lavender Brown in the common room counts as dating, Ron."

Ron sneered and shook his head and, stuffing his hands in his pockets, leaned back against the wall. "If you ever want to go on your honeymoon, you really should finish that application. It's almost time to meet the girls for lunch."

Harry stared at his friend in wonder for a moment before turning his attention back to the Portkey application. After filling out a few more lines, he looked back up at Ron. "You've seriously got a date?"

"Yes, I've seriously got a date!" Ron was starting to look offended.

Harry was starting to look confused. "But what about Hermione? I always thought you two… you know…"

Ron shrugged. "I thought so, too. We've been friends for so long, Harry. It's complicated."

"Yeah, neither one of you ever does things the easy way, do you?" Harry snickered and turned back to the papers in front of him.

A few minutes later, Harry handed the papers to the wizard sitting at the desk, who told him he would be contacted with the status of his application and, if approved, a Portkey within three days. Harry thanked the wizard and he and Ron set off for the Leaky Cauldron.

As they walked, Harry brought up the subject again. "So what prompted you to find a date at this juncture? I mean, you haven't been talking about it or anything, so it is a bit unexpected."

Ron furrowed his brow and pursed his lips for a moment before answering. "Do you remember a few months back when I told you I saw the Mirror of Erised?" Harry nodded. "Well, what I saw… it kind of gave me a little push."

"Your deepest desire is to have a date for my wedding?" Harry asked sarcastically.

"No, course not. It just made me think about some things, that's all." Ron opened the door to the Leaky Cauldron, and he and Harry went inside.

A quick look around the room showed them that Ginny and Hermione had not arrived yet. Ron went to the bar to get them some drinks while Harry found them a table. After a minute, Ron, holding four bottles of Butterbeer in his hands, wandered over to where Harry was sitting and sat the drinks down on the table, picking one up for himself as he took a seat.

"And you and Ginny getting married, that made me think too, you know," Ron said softly.

Harry took a drink for himself and leaned back in his chair. "About what? Getting married?"

"Well, yeah, I s'pose so. Eventually, anyway." Ron leaned back in his own chair and took a drink, watching Harry across the table. "I just thought it was time for me to grow up a bit, you know. We're not at Hogwarts anymore, Harry. A lot of things have changed. I've got a job now, or at least I will have a job when I'm done training, and we fought a bloody war. And you're getting married, and I don't think you'll want me hanging around your house all the time." Harry laughed slightly at that. "It's just time for me to get on with my life, yeah?"

"Yeah, I see your point," Harry nodded thoughtfully.

"Hermione does too, and she agrees with me."

Harry was surprised. "You've talked to Hermione about this?"

Just then, Hermione and Ginny walked up behind Ron. "Talked to me about what?" Hermione set her tote bag and a large package down on the end of the table and took the seat next to Ron. Ginny walked around and kissed Harry before sitting down beside him.

"Getting on with my life." Ron smiled at Hermione and handed her a bottle of Butterbeer.

"Oh, that. Yes, Harry, we've worked it all out," Hermione said brightly.

Ginny rolled her eyes and huffed, "Oh, yes, Harry, they've worked it all out." Leaning over to Harry, she added, "Hermione's got a date for our wedding."

Ron's eyes snapped to meet Hermione's. She held his gaze for a moment, then smiled, blushed, and turned her eyes back to Harry and Ginny. "I'm getting on with my life, too, you know."

Harry turned to Ginny and said, "Well that's good, because Ron's got a date as well."

Ginny blinked. Turning to face her brother again, she asked, "You've got a date?"

Ron slammed his drink down on the table, causing a little to slosh out the top of the bottle. "Why does everyone find that so hard to believe? I'm perfectly date-able." Ginny snorted.

Sitting up very tall and looking him straight in the eyes, Hermione said, "I for one think any girl would be lucky to date you, Ron."

"Thank you, Hermione." Ron nodded sharply for emphasis and stuck his nose in the air as he turned back to Harry and Ginny, who were giving each other confused looks.

Harry shrugged. "Did she tell you who she's bringing?" he asked Ginny.

"No, she didn't. Did Ron tell you?"

"Not yet."

Ginny shook her head at her fiancé. "Who do we know that would possibly want to go on a date with Ron?"

Hermione tried to stifle a laugh. Ron smacked his hand on the table to get Harry and Ginny's attention. "I'm sitting right here!"

Harry and Ginny didn't bother to stifle their laughter. Harry picked up his Butterbeer to hide his chuckling, and Ginny grinned impishly at her brother, saying, "Oh, right. Sorry, Ron. Won't happen again."

Ron leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. "Besides, who says it's someone you know?"

Ginny crossed her own arms in response, a determined look coming over her face. "Alright then, Ron, if it's nobody we know, you can at least tell us her name. Who is she?"

"No way! I'm not telling you anything now! You'll just have to wait and find out at the wedding." Ron closed his eyes and turned his head away.

"What about you, Hermione?" Harry asked. "You making Krum come in all the way from Bulgaria?"

Ron snorted. "Harry!" Hermione started. "I honestly don't see what difference it makes. You'll both find out soon enough anyway. Right now we've got more important matters to deal with."

"We do?" Harry asked skeptically.

"We do?" Ron asked hopefully.

"We do?" Ginny asked suspiciously.

"We do." Hermione turned and picked up her tote bag and shuffled around in it for a moment before drawing out a Muggle pencil and a few pieces of parchment. "We've still got to verify our flower orders, finish the music arrangements, and finalize the seating chart."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "When did my simple wedding get this complicated?"

"The moment you asked me to be your Maid of Honor," Hermione replied immediately, grinning evilly at her friend. "Harry, did you turn in your Portkey application?"

"Yeah, we should hear from them within three days." Hermione made a checkmark on her list.

"Good. Ron, you need to check with Fred and George to make sure they've got everything ready on their end."

Ron nodded. "Right. I'll do that right after we eat." Hermione nodded and made another checkmark.

Harry furrowed his brow and looked at Ginny. "What are Fred and George doing for our wedding?"

"Knowing them, it's probably better not to ask. That way we can honestly tell Mum we had nothing to do with it." Harry laughed and agreed.

"It'll be a nice surprise," Hermione assured them, smiling and winking at Ron.

"Yeah," Ron added, smiling back. "It'll be a day full of surprises."


	4. Chapter 4

Ron stood in front of an old mirror fumbling with his bowtie. "What's the matter with this thing? I think it's broken."

Harry stepped over to his friend and pushed Ron's hands out of the way. "I thought I was the one supposed to be nervous today."

Ron stood and looked at the ceiling impatiently while Harry adjusted his tie for him. "Nervous? Why should you be nervous? You're marrying Ginny!"

"Good point," Harry said as he finished with Ron's tie. He stepped to the side, allowing Ron to see himself fully in the mirror again. "But you, you've got a date with Mystery Girl. You're probably right to be nervous."

Ron sneered into the mirror. "Thanks for that. I feel loads better now." Turning around to face Harry, he shrugged. "But she's not really a mystery. I mean, she is, but I already know her. That is, we've been around each other for a while now, and we get along and all, most of the time anyway. It's just…"

"It's just that you haven't been on a date with her, and dates are different," Harry finished the thought.

"Exactly." Ron's face scrunched up in worry. "What if she doesn't like me, Harry? What if I step on her toes, or say something stupid, or what if I…?"

"In that case, at least you only have to see her at the office." Harry raised an eyebrow and waited for Ron's response.

Ron's response was confusion. "What? At the office?"

"Well, you did meet her at work, didn't you?" Ron shook his head. "You didn't meet her at Hogwarts; you didn't meet her at the Leaky Cauldron. If you didn't meet her at work, you're out of places to meet people."

Ron shook his head again, this time with a grin on his face, and brushed past Harry. "I'm not telling you, Harry. You just have to wait." Suddenly music started playing outside and Ron and Harry became aware of many people talking in the garden below the window. Taking a deep breath, Ron said, "It won't be long now."

"For either of us," Harry smiled. "You'd better go get your Mystery Girl."

"Right." Ron nodded and added, "I'll be right back."

Harry reached out and clapped Ron on the shoulder. "Good luck, mate."

"You too." Ron took another deep breath and headed out the door.

Ron paced up and down the walkway in front of the small building. _Okay, don't panic. You've been here tons of times. It's no big deal. _He forced himself to stop pacing and squared his shoulders. He walked up the small flight of stairs and along the balcony to the flat on the end. Closing his eyes and bowing his head, he slowly raised his hand and knocked on the door.

The door creaked slightly, and when Ron opened his eyes he saw the hem of a pale blue dress hovering over a pair of shapely calves.

"Ron, are you alright?"

He swallowed hard and raised his head. "I should have brought you flowers. That's what blokes are supposed to do, bring flowers."

She tilted her head back and laughed. "I think I'll manage. But we really need to get going quickly. Harry and Ginny will wonder what's keeping us. We can Apparate from here." She stepped aside, holding the door for Ron to enter the flat. Ron didn't move. "What is it, Ron?"

"It's just," Ron started. "Are you sure?"

"Don't be silly. Of course I'm sure." She shook her head. "I Apparate from here all the time."

"No, I mean, are you _sure_?"

She sighed and relaxed her shoulders. "Aren't you?"

Ron looked her straight in the eye and held her gaze for a moment. "I've never been more sure of anything in my life, Hermione."

Hermione let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, and they both laughed. Stretching out her hand toward Ron, she said, "Well, come on then. Let's not keep them in the dark any longer."

Ron took her hand and stepped forward into her flat, shutting the door behind him.

Molly jumped at the loud crack of Apparition right outside her kitchen window. At first she only saw Ron's shoulders and hair. Then he shifted a little, and Molly caught sight of bushy brown hair above a pale blue dress, and she shrieked.

Ron's head snapped up at the sound. He grabbed Hermione's hand and pulled her around the corner in through the kitchen door.

"Mum, what's wrong? Are you okay?" Ron and Hermione both had their wands out and their eyes were searching the room for any sign of danger, their hands still clasped.

Bill, Charlie, Fred, and George came rushing in from the garden while Arthur, Harry, and Ginny came bounding down the stairs, wands all at the ready. "What is it, Molly?" Arthur asked as he pushed past the boys to his wife's side.

Molly held both of her hands out toward Ron and Hermione. "Do you realize what this means?" She took a step forward and wrapped one arm around each of their necks, kissing them both on the cheek before squishing them against her.

Ginny stomped down the last few steps with her hands on her hips. Her wedding dress was hanging loosely off one shoulder. "_This_ is your big secret? _This_ is what you couldn't tell us? We've been after you for years and you finally go and get together on your own! Bloody hell!"

Molly released Ron and Hermione and turned to shake one finger at her daughter. "Ginny, watch your language in this house!" Then her eyes went wide as she took in the scene, and she shrieked again. Harry and Ginny shared a look of confusion before Molly jumped in between them, spreading her arms to the side in an attempt to block Harry's view of his bride. "Ginevra Weasley, get upstairs right this instant! Harry, you close your eyes! You're not allowed to see her yet!" Harry slapped his hands over his eyes even before Ginny turned and ran back up the steps. "Hermione, get up there and help her finish dressing! Everyone else, outside! NOW!" Hermione glanced at Ron, then released his hand and followed Ginny up the stairs. Bill, Charlie, Fred, George, and Arthur all hurried themselves out through the door.

Harry dropped his hands from his eyes and Ron nodded toward the door. "Wait a minute! I thought you said you didn't meet her at Hogwarts?"

"I didn't meet her at Hogwarts, Harry. I met her on the train, remember?" Ron grinned at his friend before heading outside.

"May I cut in?" Bill sidled up beside Ron and Hermione.

"Bugger off, Bill. You've got your own woman to dance with!" Ron twirled Hermione around so Bill was looking at the back of his head.

"She's a little encumbered at the moment. Or perhaps you hadn't noticed her belly? She can't spend too much time on her feet in her condition." Ron ignored him and continued dancing. "Come on, I just want to dance! I'm not going to steal her away from you. Though you do look lovely today, Hermione, by all accounts." Hermione blushed slightly and opened her mouth to thank him, but before she could Ron spun her around again, this time so he could glare at Bill over the top of her head.

"Why don't you go find Mum? I'm sure she'd love to dance with you."

"Mum's dancing with Charlie, Ginny's dancing with Dad, and Angelina's dancing with Fred. Even George is dancing with some blonde." Bill put his hands on Hermione's shoulders, pulling her slightly away from Ron's hands.

Hermione saw Harry sitting alone on the garden wall and shook her head at Ron before he could argue further. "It's alright, Ron. Bill only wants this one song, and you get to dance with me from now on." She blushed again and smiled at him. Ron smiled back. "Go find Harry. I'll come get you when Bill and I finish dancing, okay?"

Ron nodded and stepped back. He aimed one last glare at Bill before turning and walking away.

As Ron approached the garden wall, Harry didn't even look at him; he was too busy staring at his new wife. Ron sat down on the wall beside Harry and followed his gaze.

Arthur and his only daughter whirled around the garden smiling and laughing. Molly was dancing gracefully with Charlie, who chuckled every time Molly threw disapproving looks at Fred. Fred and Angelina had their cheeks pressed together and were dancing much slower than the beat of the music. George looked a bit awkward dancing with Luna, but they were apparently enjoying a lively conversation. Bill and Hermione were dancing easily, cutting a wide path through the crowd.

"So, you and Hermione, after all this time?"

"Yeah, me and Hermione. After all this time." Ron's eyes followed her around the garden.

Harry turned to look at his friend. "Why didn't you just tell us? We've been waiting for this just as long as you have, you know? Probably longer. I bet Ginny would have tried even harder to get you two together if she'd have known it would stop your fighting."

Ron chuckled. "I don't think anything would stop our fighting, Harry. This is just… a very good day, yeah?"

"Yes, it certainly is." After a moment of silence, Harry sat up straight and raised his eyebrows. "So you did see her in the Mirror, then?"

"Well, yeah." Ron shrugged. "I s'pose."

"You suppose? What does that mean? Either you saw her or you didn't."

"I saw her, but not just her, Harry." Ron leaned over to Harry and said very softly, "I saw her marrying me!"

A slow smile spread across Harry's face. "So you're getting married?"

"Eventually, yeah. That's my plan, anyways." Ron grimaced. "I just have to convince her to go along with it."

Harry laughed. "I imagine it won't be that tough."

Ron shook his head. "It doesn't matter how tough it is, Harry. It's just what I've got to do. You understand that, don't you?"

"Yeah. I do." Harry's eyes sought Ginny in the crowd and found her spinning under her father's outstretched arm, laughing. "Sometimes you want something so bad you'll do anything to get it."

Ron leaned back on his hands. "So Harry, now that you've beaten Voldemort and married my sister, what have you possibly got left to want? The Mirror's still in Croaker's storage room, I could show you where. You could find out if you wanted."

Harry matched Ron's position and smiled, taking in the scene before him. The song was ending and the dancing couples were breaking apart. Ginny was hugging Arthur and Molly was kissing Charlie on the cheek. Fred and Angelina were still dancing to their own tune. George and Luna were walking to the punch table hand in hand. Bill was bowing to Hermione while his very pregnant wife stood with one hand on her belly and one on her husband's back.

"Nah, there's no need. It's just a mirror to me now."

"I see Hermione every time I look. I suspect I'll see her for the rest of my life."


End file.
